In an expected move, Jim Salisbury of CSNPhilly.com confirms that Ryne Sandberg will remain with the Phillies as manager of their Triple-A affiliate in Lehigh Valley. It was made official when the Phillies announced their player development staff earlier today.

Sandberg has been passed over for big-league manager gigs in back-to-back offseasons. While he interviewed earlier this month for the Cardinals’ job which eventually went to Mike Matheny, the Hall of Fame second baseman was not a candidate with either the Red Sox or the Cubs.

Sandberg will undoubtedly be floated as a possibility for managerial openings in the majors again next offseason, but Matt Gelb of the Philadelphia Inquirerrecently hinted that if he remains with the Phillies, he could be the successor to Charlie Manuel, who turns 68 in January and is signed through the 2013 season.

I think the writing is on the wall here. Win a World Series… Charlie retires. Fall short again…. Charlie retires/fired. Sandberg has done a lot with almost nothing at AAA and would be a great change of pace with the big club.

The job of minor league managers is not to win, but to develop talent…and AAA is really the least important within this aspect as most teams use the AAA team as the MLB taxi squad, with few top prospects spending much time there. If Sandberg is given the Phillies job in a couple of years, that’s too bad for him….because, really, what is he going to have to work with?

Come on Paper….the reported 2013 and on demise of the Phillies is greatly exaggerated. They have reached the era of Red Sox and Yankee like competitiveness. With a new TV deal on the horizon, the Phillies future is looking anything but murky. Please don’t come back with the committed payroll, age of the players, and the like….I am well aware of all of that.

paperlions - Nov 22, 2011 at 7:39 AM

If you say so.

The problem is that the golden age of signing FA in their prime is over. Most teams are signing those guys (non-Scott Boras division) to extensions that take them to the end of their prime…meaning you are buying into a declining market…and the Phillies GM does not qualify as a guy that spends money wisely….he just spends it.

And if you are aware of how quickly old teams can decline, then you shouldn’t need a reminder….the Phillies simply have very little in the farm system, the guy responsible for building that super farm system is gone, and most years there isn’t much to spend your FA dollars on even if you have them to spend.

drmonkeyarmy - Nov 22, 2011 at 7:45 AM

We will agree to disagree on this topic. I don’t think the Phillies farm system is as bad as people think. I’m sure this conversation be revisited at a later time. We will see how it plays out over the next several years. For now, I will continue to view the situation through Phanatic colored glasses.

While the farm system has been pillaged the past few years, there is still plenty of talent at low levels. The Phillies do a great job of signing their draft picks quickly, and each year have at least 1 or 2 prospects that gain hype before the deadline, like a Jarred Cosart or Jason Knapp.

Which prospects (only Jon Singleton, and slightly Kyle Drabek for me) have they given up for Lee, Halladay, Oswalt or Pence that really have you lamenting any of those deals?? I’m not worried about losing a Lou Marson or Travis D’Arnaud when Sebastian Valle projects better than both…

The cupboard might look thin right now, but they have plenty of low A athletes (James, Wright, Quinn, Greene, Altherr) and young arms (May, Biddle, Aumont, Pettibone, Colvin) that will be on the radar soon…